Recently, CNTs have attracted great attention in many research areas due to their superior mechanical, thermal and electrical properties that make them potentially useful in various applications in nanotechnology, electronics, optics and other fields.
CNTs are generally synthesized by chemical vapor deposition (CVD), laser ablation or arc discharge, and are categorized as single-walled nanotubes (SWNTs) and multi-walled nanotubes (MWNTs). MWNTs include concentric cylinders with the smallest cylinder in the middle immediately surrounded by a larger cylinder which in turn is immediately surrounded by an even larger cylinder. Here, each cylinder represents a “wall” of the CNT, hence giving the name “multi-walled” nanotubes.
CNTs are one of the strongest and stiffest materials known and can be applied, for example, to manufacture fibers for ultra high strength composites that can be used in various applications traditionally served by conventional polymer-based fibers.
To harness the outstanding mechanical properties of CNTs, the development of simpler and more efficient synthesis techniques for producing arrays of CNTs is vital to the future of carbon nanotechnology and to apply this technology to commercial-scale applications.